Meet Rachel Lasda, a remarkable force both on and off the lacrosse field. Before her impressive collegiate career, Rachel made waves at West Genesee High School. She was captain of the Varsity Girl’s Lacrosse team, who became New York State Champions in 2007 and was named an All-American in 2007 as a defender.
Rachel attended Villanova University from 2007-2011, where she not only excelled as a four-year starter and two-year captain of the Women’s Lacrosse team but also earned a place on the Big East Honor Roll. She was one of the school’s top 10 all time scorers list for many years.
After college, Rachel’s passion for lacrosse did not stop there. She became part of the Latvian Women’s National Lacrosse Team, and has not only represented her country as a player but has also served as an invaluable Assistant Coach for the Latvian Women’s National Lacrosse Team. She was a player and Assistant Coach from 2013 to 2019 which included World Championships 2013 in Canada, European Championships 2015 in Prague, Czech Republic, World Championships 2017 in London, England, European Championships 2019 Netanya, Israel, World Championships 2022 in Baltimore, Maryland, European Championships 2024 Porto, Portugal. She was an Assistant Coach from 2020-2023 and might possibly make a comeback as a player/assistant coach in 2024!
As she continued her lacrosse career as a player, Rachel also continued to grow the sport of lacrosse while teaching and coaching.. Rachel worked at the Oak Knoll Upper School as a PE teacher and during that time, was the assistant coach from 2012-2014 and head coach of the Varsity Girls Lacrosse Team from 2015-2020. Under her leadership, the team achieved a stellar career record of 105-20, securing three Tournament of Championship Finals appearances, Group 1 Champions 5/5 years, Pre Tournament Champions 5/5 years, and a County Tournament Championship. Her accolades, including the 2015 USA Today Coach of the Year, 2015 NJ.com Coach of the Year, and 2015 NFHS Regional Coach of the Year, reflect the impact she has had on the sport.
Currently serving as the Head Coach for Ranney Varsity Girl’s Lacrosse in Tinton Falls, New Jersey, Rachel has been instrumental in building a program from the ground up, fostering growth and resilience among her players. Despite facing challenges, the team has shown remarkable improvement, a testament to Rachel’s coaching expertise!
In addition to her high school coaching role, Rachel has also taken on the responsibility of coaching the All Lax Select Club Team for the 2023’s and 2027’s, guiding aspiring players through their lacrosse journey. Her commitment extends beyond the field, evidenced by her role on the Careers Advisory Board.
Beyond lacrosse, Rachel is an L1 Certified CrossFit Trainer since 2019, showcasing her commitment to physical fitness and well-rounded athleticism at Ocean Athletics. Rachel is an inspiration to everyone she’s around!
Q: What sports did you play growing up?
My first sport was soccer which I started playing in the town’s rec league around age 6. I played soccer all through school up through senior year and on various summer club teams and indoor leagues. I grew up in Upstate New York though, so it was assumed that you would play lacrosse eventually. I started at age 6 through the town’s summer camp and started played for the school team in 7th grade. Club wasn’t a big scene in the area, we did most of our playing through the town but I had one season of club my junior into senior years. I know this isn’t technically a sport, but certainly helped me with my athletic development, I was a dancer from age 3 to 18 when I graduated high school. I did ballet, jazz, and pointe.
Q:Was there anything that made you hesitant about starting your sport(s)?
Not that I can recall. I was young, my siblings played sports, and my friends were playing sports so it seemed like a natural progression that I also would play sports.
Q: What female athletes did you look up to?
MIA HAMM! I loved her (and still do). She shaped a lot of what I thought it meant to be a female athlete. I was about 10 when she led Team USA to w World Cup Championship. I wanted to be just like her and go to UNC and be a soccer player. I had her book and I was able to get her autograph once which I cherished. As I got older, I still leaned on Mia Hamm and some of my favorite motivational sports quotes come from her. I will include them here:
“Somewhere behind the athlete you’ve become and the hours of practice and the coaches who have pushed you is a little girl who fell in love with the game and never looked back… play for her” “A winner is that person who gets up one more time than she is knocked down”
On a smaller scale, I really looked up to my sister also. She was just old enough (6.5 years) where she was playing competitive school sports as I was starting to build my vision of female athletes. She was (still is) a great leader and phenomenal player and I wanted to do and be everything that she was doing and being. She coached my youth team as a high schooler and it was such an impactful experience. Super supportive, super helpful and just all around helped me become a better athlete and coach.
Q: What is your favorite memory associated with sports?
Wow, this is a tough one! I have so many. I will pick 2 because they are separated by almost 10 years. The first, I loved high school sports. It was my favorite part of high school. I went to a really competitive lacrosse district and my classmates and I had been playing together essentially since we were 6 or7 years old. Once we made it to varsity, we were always contenders for states. After falling just short junior year, we put our heads down and got to work for the upcoming season. Finally in our senior year, we won states! I will always remember how amazing that felt to see our hard work pay off. On the way back to the high school, the bus was escorted off the highway by police cars and firetrucks and it seemed like the whole town was at the school waiting to greet us with congratulations. Such an incredible feeling.
My other favorite memory comes from my playing career as an adult. I got involved with the Latvian national team in 2013. My Dad is 100% Latvian and we still have family who live there. This moment comes 4 years after our first tournament with the team. Over those 4 years my sister and I faced a lot of challenges but also had a lot of triumphs. I personally was really feeling as though I belonged like a true Latvian. This memory comes from the 2017 World Championships in London. Before each game, both teams walk out and each national anthem is played. There wasn’t a big PA system or anything so teams had to sing the anthem. The first game out as it was Team Latvia’s time for the anthem, with all my teammates next to me singing the anthem and all our fans doing the same in the stands, I was overwhelmed with pride. Up to that point, I had never been more proud to be Latvian and to be playing alongside these amazing women. It was a really emotional time, and also something I will never forget.
Q: How has playing sports helped shape your life?
I owe so much to sports and I am not sure who I would be without them. Besides the obvious health and fitness benefits, sports have given me so much more. Sports taught me how to be a leader and team player. I learned that I am 100% responsible for my own actions and that my actions have consequences that I need to be accountable for. I learned that failure isn’t the worst thing, but not learning and growing from it is. I learned the benefits of discipline and hard work. I realized that I CAN do hard things so that when real life gives me challenges, I can always fall back on the experience of sports to remind me that I can handle it. I learned the importance of fairness and doing things the right way. I realized that I hate letting my teammates down and therefore have carried that same commitment and passion to my non-sports life. As a student athlete, I learned how to prioritize and practiced time management skills
Q: What advice would you give to young girls who are just starting off in sports?
Play because you love it and play because it is fun. With all the outside pressures, don’t lose sight of your own personal reasons of why you started. Take advantage of EVERY single second you get to be on the field with your teammates. Don’t waste an opportunity to play, your playing years go fast and before you know it, they will be over. Those years are some of my favorite moments of life. Learn from your coaches (and give them a break sometimes), they are there because they are passionate about the sport and they care about you as a person. Just because something is hard or uncomfortable, doesn’t mean you should quit. Put the hard work in. Even if you fail, you are still growing and becoming a stronger person. Don’t ever be afraid to fail! Being strong is cool. Do the work.
Coach Rachel 